New African American museum inspires celebration, worries among competitors - The Washington Post

New African American museum inspires celebration, worries among competitors - The Washington Post: ...Behind the good-natured joking, though, there are real anxieties about the impact the long-dreamed-of National Museum of African American History and Culture might have on smaller institutions that cover some of the same territory.

Even as they’ve celebrated the creation of a massive national museum to tell the once-marginalized story of blacks in America, some executives at existing African American museums have voiced concerns about competing with a new Smithsonian for money, collections and attention.

“I couldn’t be more thrilled that we will have a museum on the Mall dedicated to this history and culture,” Jefferson said from Los Angeles. “It’s extraordinary.

“At the same time, there’s apprehension and fear amongst many that people won’t support all the other black museums that have existed for so long ... that everybody will be distracted by the new, bright, shiny museum that’s got all the hype. That is not an outcome that anybody wants.”